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Book Reviews
Mary's Book Review Book Review Fiction “The Witches” ''' '''by Roald Dahl Scholastic Inc., 208 pages, pbk. 5.68, hdbk. 13.18 Roald Dahl’s The Witches was set against a European backdrop, not surprisingly, as the author was Welsh and resided in Buckinghamshire, England. One tragic Christmas, the narrator and his parents were traveling to spend the holiday with his grandmother in Norway. Suddenly, the car they were riding in skidded on the icy road; although the dad tried, he could not regain control of the car. Consequently, the automobile careened off the road and landed in a rocky ravine; tragically, both of his parents were killed. However, the eight year old narrator was strapped into the back seat and survived. His beloved grandmother took him in and comforted the small boy as they both grieved for her daughter, and his mother and father. Life settled into a comfortable routine in the little house in Norway. Grandmamma took very good care of the little boy. In the cold, dark evenings, when the longing and the grief were at their worst, Grandmamma began to tell stories to her small grandson. She would tell him all about the witches who lived throughout the world. She described them in such minute detail that the little boy could picture them in his mind. A witch has blue spit; and they wore itchy wigs in order to hide their sore riddled bald heads. Their feet were crammed into pointy toed heels which caused them to limp. You see, the witches had no toes. They always wore gloves to hide their claw like hands, for they had no nails, but rather, long thin claws like a cat. Their nostrils were very big also. They needed this extra size for smelling out children, a smell they detested. They claimed that children smelled like dog droppings; and, the cleaner the child, the worse the smell. For this and other reasons the witches were on a mission to eradicate all the children from the world. One day the executor of his father’s estate paid a visit to the little boy and his grandmother. According to the will they could no longer live in Norway. His parents wanted him to go to school in England. So, they packed up bag and baggage and moved into the old house. It was while playing outside in his tree house that he first encountered a witch. She tried to entice him with a snake but he was too smart for that. Grandmamma had trained him well. His second episode did not turn out as well. While on holiday with his grandmother he found himself trapped in a room full of them; it was a very large conference room. He couldn’t believe his ears when he heard them plot to turn all the children in England into mice. Then, to his horror, he witnessed Bruno Jenkins being turned into a mouse; and, just when he thought he was in the clear, they sniffed him out. He had not taken a bath in quite a while so it took the witches longer to smell him. Though he tried to run he was soon caught and turned into a mouse. He and Bruno were able to escape upstairs to Grandmamma who, after she got over the shock, helped devise a plan to stop the witches in their tracks. Our narrator sneaks into the Grand High Witch’s room and steals the magic formula which turns children into mice. After a harrowing adventure in the kitchen the mouse formula is put in the witch’s soup. The witch’s are soon scurrying all over the dining room as mice. They are quickly killed by the frantic waiters who are hitting them with wine bottles, chair legs and anything else they can find. The narrator and his grandmother head for home. He really is fine with being a mouse and loves the speed and dexterity which are now his. As the two talk about what has happened the narrator decides that it isn’t enough to get the witches living in England. He and his grandmamma decide to turn all the witches in the world into mice. They are excited and determined as they set out for more adventure. I enjoyed reading The Witches ''and was struck by Roald Dahl’s imagination as always. His are not the traditional fairytales. ''The Witches was an evil versus good plot with the hero suffering at the hands of the villain. The ending was unusual in that the hero did not transform back into a little boy. In fact he was to live out his life as a mouse. Another interesting note was that the narrator did not mind being a mouse. I felt this was not true to what would really happen even in a fairytale. The emotions would certainly have been very different. However, Mr. Dahl suspended reality right from the beginning; and, he explained the boy’s reactions in a very simple and therefore a believable way. All in all, The Witches is a very entertaining read. Andrea's Book Review Newspaper Book Review September 29th, 2013 Copyright. Andrea Blair Title: ''Math Curse'' Author/Illustrator: 'Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith '''Publisher: '''Penguin Group '''Publication Year: '''1995 ''Math Curse ''written by Jon Scieszka and illustrated by Lane Smith is an extraordinary question-posing, math-solving, hilarious book about a boy cursed with the ability to think of everything as a math problem. The pictures in this book are engaging, as well as colorful and creative, and captivate the reader's attention. Jon Scieszka was on a mission when he began to write ''Math Curse. Math is a dreaded subject for many children. Scieszka wanted to write a book that would comically illustrate the relatability of math, as well as demonstrate the simplicity of math, if one chooses to have an open-mind. "On Monday in math class, Mrs. Fibonacci says, "You know, you can think of almost everything as a math problem". On tuesday I start having problems." When the teacher states that almost everything can be related to math, one student begins to have extreme math anxiety, which truly becomes a curse. Every thought, every action, every decision is related to math, causing this perplexed student to almost lose his mind. Progressing through one day, the reader can clearly make judgement that almost everything can, undoubtedly, be thought of as a math problem. Math Curse poses several questions to readers, without offering answers (until the very end, on the back of the book), and allows readers to determine solutions for themselves. Readers are able to relate this book to their everyday lives and hopefully gain a greater respect for math. The pictures are also important, as they add emphases to the already bold and vivid words on the page. It is of my opinion that Math Curse is a fantastical book, that creates a new outlook on a subject that many students cringe at the mention of. This book is geared towards higher elementary students, yet captivates the minds of young adults, and grown-ups, as well. Wheels begin to turn and critical thinking skills are exposed as readers flip through every page in ''Math Curse. ''Jon Scieszka does a fantastic job conveying his message; the message that math is in our everyday lives and it is up to us to figure it out. I highly recommend this book to any teacher or parent trying to ease the transition from simple addition and subtraction to more complicated math. Rebekah's Book Review '''Title: There's a Nightmare in my Closet Author/Illustrator: ''' Mercer Mayer Publisher: Puffin '''Publication Year: 1975 ' 'A little boy decides to face the nightmare in his closet. Every night before bed he makes sure that his closet door is closed tight.One night he builds up enough courage to fight his fears. He shoots him with a pop gun, and the nightmare then starts to cry. Feeling bad for him the boy tucks him into bed, climbs in next to him, and ignores the other nightmares in the closet because there's no more room in his bed. Another nightmare peeks out, showing he's not crazy for thinking that he's going to scare him. Nope, not happing.' ' As a child I can remember being afraid of monsters and things in my closet. I read this book to my students at school and it was a hit. I think Mercer Mayer did a fantastic job creating monsters that were cute and friendly looking. He definatly displays an understanding of childrens fears. The illustrations are fantastic as well as the little boys approach to nightmares. In an interview, Mayer said he wanted to write books to help children with their fears. This book is one that I would have on my child's book shelf at home, and would encourage other parents as well. I highly recomend it. Even though the title sounds a bit scary it's a great read for children that worry.' Mandy's Book Review ''Book Review: "''A Giraffe and a Half" by: Shel Silverstein Poetry Shel Silverstein HaperCollins Publishers; 46 pages; $16.99 "A Giraffe and a Half" written and illustrated by Shel Silverstein is a story about a boy and his pet giraffe. The reader is introduced to the boy and his giraffe on the first page and the fun antics start on the next. From s-t-r-e-t-c-h-i-n-g the giraffe to be a giraffe and a half to having the giraffewear a suit so he could look cute. This ryhming ridiculousness about all of the items this giraffe can accumulate is funny from the very begining. Once the giraffe has so many items that he is unable to function, literally beacuse he "fell in a hole that was dug by a mole" the boy desides to get a pole for "him to climb out of the hole" the antics continue, only in reverse until you only have a boy and his giraffe. Shel Silverstein's talents are showcased in this short story not only with his writing, but also in the illustrations. The reader has a front row seat to the craziness that is the Silverstein legacy. I throughly enjoyed reading "A Giraffe and a Half" on mutiple occasions. I find (as do my children) it is extremely amusing to see exactly how fast you can read this book without literally getting toungue tied. The words that the poem is writtes with are great for young readers and allows them the enjoyment of reading this funny category of evets alone as well as with an adult. I also believe that there is an underlying meaning to this book. In the begining the boy wants his giraffe to be more than just a giraffe so he piles on all of the interesting items and animals to improve upon his pet. By the middle of the poem, when the giraffe falls in a hole by doing everything he could to impress his boy, the boy realizes that he just wants his giraffe back. The two work together to gid rid of all of the craziness and by the end of the book you are left with the original boy and giraffe. The morale that I learned from the story is to be content with what you have because you may not be able to handle any more than that. LaChanda's Book Review Judy Blume ' '''Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. ' Are you there God? It’s me, Margaret. We’re moving today. I’m so scared God. I’ve never lived anywhere but here. Suppose I hate my new school? Suppose everybody there hates me? Please help me God. Don’t let New Jersey be too horrible. Thank you. '' Margaret Simon is the main character in this book. She is almost twelve and nervous about living in a new place. She talks to God and her parents don’t know. She feels her grandmother is the reason for their move, but Farbrook, New Jersey is more convenient for the family. Margaret has moved from New York City and she is anxious to fit in with her new friends. She is asked to join a secret club and takes advantage of the opportunity. Nancy her new friend invites her to her house, where the meeting will take place. Margaret is told to come over and not to wear socks. The club would be called the PTS’s, which stands for Pre-Teen Sensation While at the meeting the girls talked about boys, bras, and getting their first period. Margaret felt she wasn’t normal and did not fit in. She was uncomfortable talking about grown up things even if it was a friend. She confides in God concerning her everyday dilemmas, because he listens to her. This was a great book for young girls. I feel students will enjoy reading books by Judy Blume with parent permission. Just as many of her readers I could relate to some of her charters. Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret paints a picture of how a young girl might feel in that pre-teen age where their world begins to change. It shows that belonging is very important during this age and any age. I would recommend that young girls read this book and discuss their feeling afterwards. Judy Blume, an American author has written many children and young adult novels. Her sales have exceeded 80 million and have been translated into 31 languages. She was born February 12, 1938 in Elizabeth New Jersey. She received her education from the New York University in 1961. Ms. Blume is known as Judith Sussman the daughter of Rudolph and Esther Sussman. She was married three times and has three children. Judy Blume inherited her love for books from her parent, who filled their home with them. She began writing when her own child was in preschool. Her books relate to real issues as divorce and menstruation. She is the first author to be successful writing these types of books. Her books are controversial to those who are closed minded and feel children should not read about real issues. She has written kid picture books but her books are mainly aimed at adolescents, teenagers, and adult novels. None of her titles have gone out of print and she has sold about 70,000,000 copies. Deenie, Tiger Eyes, and Forever were filmed for television. Judy Blume has received many awards such as the Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children’s Book Award and Medal of Distinguished Contribution to American Letters. For her book Are You There God? It’s Me Margret, she received the following awards and achievements 2012 Scholastic Magazine's Parent & Child 100 Greatest Books For Kids, 2005 Time Magazine All-Time 100 Novels List, 1980 Great Stone Face Award New Hampshire Library Association, 1979 North Dakota Children's Choice Book Award, 1976 Young Hoosier Award, Indiana Media Educators, 1975 Nene Award from the Children of Hawaii, 1970 Outstanding Book of the Year, New York Times. Brittany's Book Review Add your book review here. '''Newspaper Book Review ' '''“Peter’s Chair” Written By: Ezra Jack Keats Peter stretched as high as he could. There! His tall building was finished. CRASH! Down it came."Shhhh," called his mother. You'll have to play more quietly. Remember we have a new baby in the house."(Excerpt from “Peter’s Chair”) Read Ezra Jack Keats, “Peter’s Chair” because of he deliver the reader vivacious painting and collage art and the sense of unerring off truly important childhood dramas. In Peter’s Chair he truly brings out what it would feel like if you were a little child about to experience a big change in their family and how would it make the oldest child feel. The story is simply remarkable and very easy to understand! In Peter's Chair, a little boy name'd '''Peter is expecting a baby sister! He has been the only child for a long time and when he finds out his mother is expecting a baby, let alone a girl, he immediately begins to wonder what will happen to him if his family gets larger. Will his parents ignore him, will his parents treat the baby better? Peter begins to channel his thoughts in his mind and tells the story from his mental thoughts. One day Peter walks into his old room and everything has been painted pink, even his old cradle and he begins to think he is being replaced, but little does he know he isn’t being replaced he is getting older so he will be getting the bigger bedroom. But while Peter's parents seem to have come down with a burning case of pink fever, there's no way he's letting them get anywhere near his favorite chair with their wet paintbrushes. After seeing the room and realizing they may want to paint his favorite chair pink he decides it would be a great idea to run away from his family and his new little sister. So he packs his belongings and his favorite chair. Peter finally realizes that he is too big for his cradle and crib and the best thing would be to give it to a smaller child, his sister. His mother later tells him they he will be loved regardless of Susie’s arrival and he has nothing to worry about. "Peter's Chair" by Ezra Jack Keats demonstrates the importance of learning to share and helps children realize that, as they get older, they will not be able to do the same things as before. It also relates to children who have a growing family. Even though your family is growing, it doesn’t mean the other child will be forgotten about. In this story, Peter’s family is about to welcome a brand new baby girl; as a result of this, they are painting all of Peter's baby things pink. This story is told from Peter’s point of view, with some insight from his mother and father. Ezra Jack Keats really did an amazing job with the story and illustrations. As a parent and a teacher, I thought this story was great, and emanated a very important message. The one thing that I did not like was that it wasn't very interactive for my students. It was really a story that just allowed her to listen and take it all in so she kind of just looked at the pictures as I went along; however, the pictures were great. That's another thing that I like about Keats' books. The pictures are always very colorful and vibrant '''Keats, Ezra Jack. ''Peter’s Chair. New York: Picture Puffin, 1998.' Jasmine's Book Review '''The Three Little Pigs by: James Marshall' James Marshall is a great author who has written and illustrated children's books since the late eighties. Marshall’s famous books fall under the genre of fairy tales. James Marshall is best known for his George and Martha collections. He has also rewritten many of the old fairy tales such as Goldilocks and The Three Bears and The Three Little Pigs. As I read James Marshall story of The Three Little Pigs I noticed on the cover, the book contained a phrase that stated there are Fairy tales and there are Marshall Tales. As I read this statement I really did not know what to expect from reading his books. As I read James Marshall’s story of Three Little Pigs the story seems to start like the original fairy tale story. The first pig builds his house out of straw and the second pig builds his house out of sticks; alone came a wolf who eats both pigs within a matter of seconds from the their homes. Marshall adds humor as the wolf approaches the third pigs’ house, which is made out of bricks. The wolf demands the pig let him come in. As we all know the pig did not comply and the wolf tried to blow down the house. However, when the wolf realized he could not blow down the house, he tried to con the pig into meeting him at the apple tree, garden and fair at a set time. The pig in this story was very smart because the pig would always arrive an hour before it was time to meet. By the time the wolf would arrive the pig had already pick apples, cooked the turnips and enjoyed a day at the fair. The wolf finally grows annoyed with the pig and storms onto the roof of the pigs’ house. When the pig saw this he put a big iron pot under the fire place and stoked the fire. The wolf said dinnertime as he was coming down the fire place and the pig ate the wolf. I found that to be very hilarious. James Marshall enhances his stories with humor and I enjoy reading his work. He was a wonderful author who name will live on through is books. Renay's Book Review Add your book review here. Vicki's Book Review Title of Book: The Night Before Preschool Genre: 'Preschoolers '''Author and/or Illustrator: '''Natasha Wing/Amy Wummer '''Publisher: '''Penguin Group '''Publication Year: '''2011 '''Book Summary: '''The Night Before Preschool is a about a little boy named Billy who was terrified to attend school for the very first time. The night before school Billy was very terrified that he could not sleep while his mom prepared his lunch and laid out his clothes. On his first day Billy would not talk, eat or play with any of the children. When it was time for nap Billy sobbed and sobbed because he did not have his "Teddy". So one of his classmates offered him a stuffed bunny and he fell sleep. Was he woke from his nap he was very happy and excited to return the next day. '''Classroom Activity Ideas: '''After reading this book I would implement circle time so we could sing, dance and laugh. I would also do a "show and tell" day where the children bring in their favorite item to discuss with the class. ' Book review/reflection: 'This book is very typical for a child/ren starting school for the very first time. On that first day some are very shy, distant and afraid to be in an unfamiliar place. So when I have new students I try to soothe them with hugs, love, fun, and laughter. In review I enjoyed the book. It had rhyme and rythym. I would definitely read this aloud to my class. Vicki's Book Review '''Title of Book: '''The Grouchy Ladybug '''Genre: '''Ages 3-7 '''Author and/or Illustrator: '''Eric Carle '''Publisher: '''Harper Trophy '''Publication Year: '''1986 '''Book Summary: '''The Grouchy Ladybug is a story abou bullying. This one ladybug faeels that she is invincible. She tries to fight every insect and animal that crosses her path but she meets her match when she runs into a whale that sends her flying away with a flick of his tail. At that point the ladybug realizes that she is not as bad and grouchy as she believe's. Classroom Activity Ideas: 'The class will make paper ladybugs stuffed with a couple of circles. I will read the class a list of words and have them place a dot on the ladybug when they hear a word that begins with the letter "L". ' Book review/reflection: 'I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Before reading this book I had no idea of what the message would be but after reading how she was so grouchy and how she always wanted to fight; I connected it to bullying. Each time she would meet an insect or aninmal she would back off by saying "you are not big enough". She then meets her match. Eventhough the whale ignored her the first couple of times, it was ticked off by the fourth and the ladybug now knows that it does not pay to always try to pick fights. The lesson learnd is in the end it pays to be nice and peaceful. Danielle's Book Review Fiction A Bad Case of Stripes By: David Shannon A Bad Case of Stripes is about a young girl named Camilla who loved Lima Beans but didn't want to eat them because the other kids at her school didn't like Lima Beans. Camilla had many friends at school and she was liked by most of them. If eating her favorite food would make Camilla unpopular she, was willing to take that risk. Camilla worked very hard at being popular amongst her peers in school. Before school, one morning Camilla took her time to pick out the best outfit to where to school that day. In class, while the class was reciting the Pledge of Alligance, Camilla body turn into the red, white and blue flag. The kids were so surprised of what happened to Camilla that they all began to laugh. Her classmates saw that she had turned into a flag as they all sang. To Camilla's surprised she didn't know what to think. Then the students started calling out out things like checkers and polka dot. Whenever they called out things Camilla would change instantly into that pattern. Camilla became the laughing stalk of her school. Her popularity went down the drain. As the commotion continued, Camilla was pulled out of the class and to the office she went. Camilla's teacher called her mom to let her know that Camilla must be picked up from school immediately. When her mom saw her, she was astonished and quickly to her to the doctor. The doctor examine her closely and gave her permission to return back to school. Camilla's mom knew that she could not go back to school under those condition. The doctor called in many different specialist, but that didn't work. It only got worse because when the specialist would say what they thought it might was wrong with Camilla, she would turn into those things. On doctor said maybe it's a virus, she turned into a virus. Another one said may be it's fungus, then fungus formed on Camilla. When the specialist was surprised that they couldn't fix the problem, they called in an expert. Well, the expert only made the problem worse because Camilla then exploded into her room. Her bed became her mouth, the dresser is her nose and two pictures on the wall become her eyes. But in all of that her cute little bow is still noticeable. After all that, a little old lady came knocking on Camilla's house door claiming that she has a cure for Camilla. The little old lady knew that only Camilla can fix her problem. Wonder what the fix was- yes, of course, Lima Beans. In the beginning Camilla refused to eat the Lima Beans although she was craving for them. Out the door the little old lady started. At once, Camilla gave in and ate the Lima Beans. The Lima Beans changed Camilla back to normal instantley. Before this author study, I didn’t have a clue as to who David Shannon was. After reading several of his books, I’m glad that I chose David Shannon for my Author/Illustrator. His work is amazing. The illustrations are incredible. During my research, majority of the pictures and interviews of David show that he’s a very enthusiastic person, with a great personally. He seems to be a big kid at heart. Shannon’s books are fantastic for children. I believe that children can relate to his books especially A Bad Case of Stripes and No, David! A Bad Case of Stripes is my favorite. The story behind it is great for children who struggle with trying to fit in or wanting to become popular among their peers. The imagination of this story is mind blowing, how Camilla changes into all these different things. Helena's Book Review '''Title Knuffle Bunny ' '''Author: Mo Willems Fiction Pulication; Disney- Hyperion ( 9/1/ 2004) Pages 40 Book Review: The story is about a little girl name Trixie who favorite toy named "Knuffle bunny" is left behind. Trixie and her dad go on an errand to do laundry. Once reaching there through her wide eye amazement she sees these big machines and the quarters used to operate them that she forgets all about her bunny. During the wondrous adventure she forgets about her bunny. Trixie is having the time of her life until she returns home and realizes she doesn’t have her bunny. She begins to try to tell her father that her precious bunny is gone left behind at the now dreadful laundry. As Trixie tries to explain thru her childish babbling, that knuffle bunny is gone she begins to cry. Still wondering how to make him understand it's gone' she begins to become frustrated and upset. Why doesn’t he understand? Not understanding why Trixie is acting this way dad becomes annoyed. He tries to calm her but to no avail Trixie’s continues her frustration. When mom see Trixie she realizes what the problem is and without time wasted they return to the laundry where they find Knuffle Bunny waiting. Trixie is now happy again. This is a good story it shows how children can sometimes be misunderstood when they try to express themselves and we don't understand. My heart went out to Trixie for the fact that she could not be understood and tried so hard using the only means that she knew. In addition to the story, the black and white pictures show how they go about their daily lives. It gives a picture of how Trixie's family goes through a day in the neighborhood. This is a good reading material not just for a child but for the adults as well. ' '